172 Cup SC Vs 197 Cup

[d4nmc]

Come this March I'm finished paying off some money and a sharesaving scheme from works pays out so its either new car time/modifying time for my 172 cup. Basic options are:

1. Supercharge my 172 cup, spend money upgrading other bits and bobs as I'd have about £6k to spend. One of the reasons this is a great idea is I love my modified cars, I love my 172 cup and supercharged Im confident it would be an animal which to me is a dream. One of the reasons against is I've done it before and I know the financial loss is huuuuge when doing something like this and even spending that much the car isn't always 100% reliable.

2. Sell my 172 cup on and buy myself a 197 cup. I'd have about £8.5k to spend so I'd be able to get a nice one having seen many for sale in that range. I'd most likely buy one which had already been modified a bit, most likely one from this owners club lol. I have driven 197 cups a few times as I've been close to getting one on more than one occasion but resisted taking on the finance, and I really like them and found them to be a positive drive and enough of an upgrade from the 172. A reason against this is it's still just a 2l Clio and probably ain't as quick as my 172 cup when it comes to it, and a bit more pace is one aspect I crave.

Experiences of a charged 172?
Made the switch yourself?
Anthing else helpful?

 

[Poopensharten]

You hit the nail on the head, its money you will never get back so think long and hard about it. To me making a quick car faster although appealing, a compromise to reliability and the general direction in which it was intended...

This aside its okay if you plan to keep it a long time to enjoy/make personal to you but again a big over head from the outset! Again getting a 197 Cup, in my opinion its not so much as a step up in performance as more a side step as there wont be much in it due to power/weight etc...

Why not get some more money together and buy a 197 with all the toys i.e an R27?

 

[Iain C]

I wouldnt charge the cup. Waste of cash imo.
Meg 225 cup? Still not much faster than your 172 cup tho. The next level of fast cars gets really expensive

 

[not normal dan]

tbh either opition your gonna lose money on cause cars are money pits in general. I mean the 197 would depriate value wise over time an as for ya 172 you would never get your money back on it but its always the way with modified cars but you would have something special an as said an animal that would give alot more expensive machines a good run for there money

I've thought about getting rid of my 172 on a few occassions but to get someting as fun with more power is as said above expensive because the cs is quite a quick car out the box so i'm just gonna stick with it an hopefully get myself some itb's an make the car my own

 

[brisa4984]

number 2 please.

 

[Crispy Rice]

Keep your cup and buy an s2000. Rwd and fwd fun!

 

[popie]

Sc cup's are great fun..... when they are working.

 

[ForceIndia]

Neither. It sounds like you want to keep the fun element of an rs Clio, with more power.

Megane r26, and a remap. Knocking on the pace of a mk2 frs. Cheap, as well.

Whatever anyone says about the merits of sc'ing a 172, even if it is awesome, you're basically setting fire to 6k. For anyone, that's a lot of cash.

And if you do decide to go sc, do your research about where to get it done. I've seen one of the popular conversions up close.

Of shower shite. Feel free to reorganise the words.

 

[TimR26]

What Brown Bear says.

I got the R26 because for less than £1000 you can be running 270 - 280 bhp.

 

[DanFreemanPhoto]

3. Keep the cup. Put it on track and have fun with it.

 

[ForceIndia]

6k on suspension, tuition and track days would do 2 things.

1) give you a perma smile
2) make you quicker, in every car you own in future.

 

[DanFreemanPhoto]

^One of the main reasons why I didnt SC my 182

Can't recommend track days enough.

 

[Chris205]

I'd probably go for the megane r26 aswell

As good as the idea sounds of having a charged Clio they seem more common to end up in a full on horror storey of cars breaking down and blowing up.

If the Clio is a must I'd probably look at itb's, keep it n/a as it was intended from the factory

 

[d4nmc]

One the subject of the meganesport... I like them but having driven one they aren't as raw and exhilarating as the clio, which is an element of the drive i like the most, I'd be needing a modified/uprated one to see to my needs- and thats what puts me off. If I'm going up to that size of hatchback with a turbo it's gonna be a mk1 Focus RS all day long as my first choice.

Trackdays... Done quite a few last year and will continue to do more this summer regardless of what I end up driving, loads fun to be had. Tuition is a great idea and something I'm well keen to do early in this years season. I wouldn't go blowing more money on suspension upgrades as I feel the coilovers with strut braces and solid top mounts is as far as I need to take the Cup for my needs, as it's a daily driver as well.

 

[d4nmc]

Keep your cup and buy an s2000. Rwd and fwd fun!

S2000s, a charged mx5 and 350zs are on the shortlist as possible replacements- also considered a z4 but the model i like is waaaaaaay out of my rice range. I've driven a 350z and loved it, really nice car to be in and I imagine can be a lot of fun. Still yet to try an S2000 but i am a massive fan of them.

ITBs as an upgrade to the Clio doesn't excite me, bang for buck is poor at best albeit the sound and response from the engines after the upgrade is pretty darn good. It would be home fitting for the ITBs which does appeal to me, I guess the cost is brought down quite a bit by doing it like that.

Great responses so far, after spending last night looking at supercharged cups on YouTube I had almost convinced myself but yous have brought me back down to earth which is a good thing!

 

[d4nmc]

You hit the nail on the head, its money you will never get back so think long and hard about it. To me making a quick car faster although appealing, a compromise to reliability and the general direction in which it was intended...

This aside its okay if you plan to keep it a long time to enjoy/make personal to you but again a big over head from the outset! Again getting a 197 Cup, in my opinion its not so much as a step up in performance as more a side step as there wont be much in it due to power/weight etc...

Why not get some more money together and buy a 197 with all the toys i.e an R27?

I am interested in the difference between a 197 Cup and an R27, I didn't think there was a lot in it? Money ain't that much of issue keeping the purchase on the good side of 10k was the plan!
The increase in performance from the 172 to the 197 ain't a problem, as the 197 range makes up for it with other aspects.

 

[ForceIndia]

All I'll say is that if you want a raw hot hatch, a 197 is not the answer. And size wise, there's bugger all difference between a 197 and a meg!

 

[LIL B]

Or get a evo or similar and throw a couple bags at that and be faster everywhere, braking, cornering, in and out of corners... Why bother with a Renault?

The 172 is a good car, and great a on track but the 197 is no step up.

 

[wozza182]

Get an R26 you can pick one up for around £9k now.
Boost FTW!
Man I miss my meggy.

 

[d4nmc]

Or get a evo or similar and throw a couple bags at that and be faster everywhere, braking, cornering, in and out of corners... Why bother with a Renault?

The 172 is a good car, and great a on track but the 197 is no step up.

I wouldn't consider an evo as much as I like them until i was buying a car for 15k so i could keep 5k to one side for maintenance and running costs. I didnt expect a 197 to be a step up performance wise as it's much more of a lard arse than the 1*2s, it brings other attributes to the table though for what it lacks in pace. An advantage to the 197 I ain't mentioned yet is I could share that car with the wife, meaning I'd be allowed to finish off my mk1 golf project which has been on going for 4 years now- not allowed too many cars as I've been there n done that already (my peak was 5 cars ha).

 

[d4nmc]

That is a bit scary, I didn't realise there was soooooo little in it size wise. R26 over a well specced 225? Im sure it was a 225 I test drove, does the R26 come in liquid yellow with the F1 decals? Or is that a different model again?

 

[JayR]

Neither. It sounds like you want to keep the fun element of an rs Clio, with more power.

Megane r26, and a remap. Knocking on the pace of a mk2 frs. Cheap, as well.

Whatever anyone says about the merits of sc'ing a 172, even if it is awesome, you're basically setting fire to 6k. For anyone, that's a lot of cash.

And if you do decide to go sc, do your research about where to get it done. I've seen one of the popular conversions up close.

Of shower s**te. Feel free to reorganise the words.

But you've told me before that the Megs are dull? lol

I would go the route of an R27 or fully spec'd up 197 anyway in answer to the original posters question.

 

[popie]

Sad but very true, iv had to live with it the past 7 months......wish I could turn back time :dapprove:.
It's on a trailer as i speak.

 

[ForceIndia]

But you've told me before that the Megs are dull? lol

I would go the route of an R27 or fully spec'd up 197 anyway in answer to the original posters question.

I've called an r26 dull? I think most would agree I rave about the r26 too much. Mk3 clios, and the megs aren't as raw and exciting as the mk2's, but they excel in other areas.

But if comparing both, the r26 is quicker, and better to drive in every respect (bar being a turbo) than a 197.

 

[JayR]

Well fair play but im sure when iv mentioned chopping mine in for an R26 before you've advised otherwise! See i do listen to you! lol

I like both personally but between the two options the OP has mentioned it would be a 197 all the way.

 

[ForceIndia]

I'll be honest, I hate 197's, I've never clicked with a single one that I've driven. But I'd recommend one over a sc'd 172!

 

[theduck]

Have to agree with Warren tbh on all counts, especially having seen the same supercharged car as he is refering to!!

 

[ForceIndia]

Have to agree with Warren tbh on all counts, especially having seen the same supercharged car as he is refering to!!

It's like a club. Anyone that's a member has a bad neck from shaking their head and tutting.

 

[popie]

Did you see the list of things wrong with it....lol

 

[Spee]

3. Keep the cup. Put it on track and have fun with it.

Agreed! It's getting more and more pointless having a fast road car these days. You could get a really nice daily and easily afford to develop and track your Cup with that kind of money.

 

[jack_kemp]

Agreed! It's getting more and more pointless having a fast road car these days. You could get a really nice daily and easily afford to develop and track your Cup with that kind of money.

^^^^ this.

Buy a nice daily and turn the cup into a weekend/track *****. Stripped out and itb'd it would be near as fast as a charged one anyway. Or there's the JMS manifold if you didn't want the huge outlay of itb's

 

[ForceIndia]

Did you see the list of things wrong with it....lol

Fingers crossed it's right soon.

 

[d4nmc]

Agreed! It's getting more and more pointless having a fast road car these days. You could get a really nice daily and easily afford to develop and track your Cup with that kind of money.

ITBs are going to set me approximately £3k if I do the majority of the work, I'd need a grand for some new seats and belts and some track tyres with new brakes/pads... Would leave me £1.5k to get myself a nice derv runabout so the Cup is purely for track fun.

I can see the benefit of this as the car is pretty well focused for track use anyways, the mods it's had so far already lean towards that as it's main use.

I'm wanting to see a nice example of an R26 and R27 as they appear to be the two models which suit me the best.

 

[Nick172Cup]

Got 2 choices really with the Cup if your happy with it.

1 - Spend 6k on suspension/tuition/trackdays/power mods like the JMS manifold (changes how the power is delivered which will give that different feel when driving!)

2 - Get a 1-2k diesel car, 1k trailor/towbar and spend the rest of it going mad on the clio/taking it off the road (like the above partswise but more savage). As Spee said its pointless having a fast road car these days if you can do enough trackdays, road driving really isnt that great unless you have a perfectly setup fast road car.

 

[hilldawg172]

Go jap! i fully intend to live out my teenage dream of a 400bhp - 500bhp rx7 next year when i turn 25. Clios are fun little cars but if you are after more power move on! Plus rwd is alot more fun that fwd well imo anyway.

 

[SteveS Cup]

I've decided not to SC my Clio. I've done big power in FWD cars not intended to have that power before and it's been a mistake... However, I was thinking about a mild SC kit a month or 2 ago but I decided not too... 1 main reason for me was the loss of AC LOL!!!!

If you like the mk1 FRS that much then get it!!! I'd choose an R26 personally but it's your money.

I don't see a 197/200 as enough of an upgrade in performance TBH, only good thing is that it's newer.

 

[Steve]

Power can be bought Talent can't
Learn to drive on track, don't go the supper sticky tyre route as you will soon get bored.
Lot more fun to be had playing with car on limit

 

[alanc1000]

Size wise, there's bugger all difference between a 197 and a meg!

... yet the 197 is still 101kg lighter, its clever how they do that isn't it!

 

[ForceIndia]

... yet the 197 is still 101kg lighter, its clever how they do that isn't it!

Clearly power and torque has mass.

 

[d4nmc]

I've decided not to SC my Clio. I've done big power in FWD cars not intended to have that power before and it's been a mistake... However, I was thinking about a mild SC kit a month or 2 ago but I decided not too... 1 main reason for me was the loss of AC LOL!!!!

If you like the mk1 FRS that much then get it!!! I'd choose an R26 personally but it's your money.

I don't see a 197/200 as enough of an upgrade in performance TBH, only good thing is that it's newer.

The supercharging route is seeming less and less of a good idea the more I hear from people who have done it and the more I listen to the reasoning of those who have already faced this choice. I'm a CUP man so the AC ain't ever been an element I got used to anyways.

R26 and Focus RS are just about level pegging in my books tbh, I have wanted a Focus for a long time though so I'd be hard pushed to look past a nice one- to be fair though the same could be said for a nice R26!

Go JAP? Unlikely unless it's a screaming Civic Type R or an R32 GTR- I'm not realistically considering those cars as a viable replacement but never say never I guess.